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Following is a question by the Hon Fred Li Wah-ming and a written reply by the Secretary for Food and Health, Dr York Chow, in the Legislative Council today (December 9):
Question:
In connection with complaints about and regulation of food products or complementary medicines claimed to have health maintenance effects, will the Government inform this Council whether:
(a) it knows if the Consumer Council had received any complaint about the above food products or medicines in the past three years; if so, of the number of such complaints received and the investigation results;
(b) in the past three years, it had uncovered that some of the above food products or medicines contained western or Chinese medicines, or carried health claims which contravened the Undesirable Medical Advertisements Ordinance (Cap. 231); if so, of the number of such cases and the penalties imposed; and
(c) the authorities will reconsider formulating dedicated regulatory framework and legislation to regulate the above food products and medicines or products such as "dietary supplements"?
Reply:
President,
(a) The number of complaints received by the Consumer Council in the past three years about products such as food items claimed to have beneficial health effects is set out in Annex 1.
Upon receipt of complaint, the Consumer Council would help resolve the dispute between the consumer and the business concerned through mediation. Subject to the consumer's request, the Consumer Council would keep a record of the case after mediation and conduct product research as and when necessary.
(b) Between 2007 and October 2009, the Department of Health (DH) has found in the market a total of 183 cases in which products were suspected of containing western drug ingredients undeclared on their labels in contravention of the Pharmacy and Poisons Ordinance (Cap 138). Among these cases, the DH has proceeded with prosecution with respect to some cases based on the advice of the Department of Justice, all leading to successful conviction. The number of cases of prosecution and the penalties imposed are set out in Annex 2.
During the same period, the DH has successfully proceeded with prosecution with respect to a total of 41 cases under the Undesirable Medical Advertisements Ordinance (Cap 231), including cases in which products were claimed to have beneficial health effects. Fines ranging from $1,000 to $24,000 were imposed.
(c) At present, products such as food items claimed to have beneficial health effects, "complementary medicines" or "dietary supplements" generally sold on the market are regulated under the following ordinances according to their ingredients:
(i) Products containing western medicine must be registered under the Pharmacy and Poisons Ordinance before putting up for sale. These products must meet the requirements in respect of safety, quality and efficacy before they can be registered. They should also be labelled with such particulars as ingredients, dosage and method of usage. Officers of the DH will inspect pharmacies and medicine shops frequently to see if there are false descriptions or descriptions which are different from those approved when the products were registered. Samples of these products sold on the market are taken for tests by the DH from time to time. Actions are also taken to investigate and follow up on complaints. If the products are found to contain unregistered western medicines after investigation and testing, the DH will take legal actions and require the shops to recall their products immediately.
(ii) All products which fall within the definition of proprietary Chinese medicines (pCms) under the Chinese Medicine Ordinance (Cap 549), i.e. products which are composed solely of Chinese medicines as active ingredients and for treatment and health maintenance purposes, are regulated under this Ordinance. Such products must meet the requirements in respect of safety, quality and efficacy before they can be registered. The Chinese Medicine Ordinance also requires the labelling of registered pCms to include information such as main ingredients, method of usage, dosage, packing specifications, place of production, etc. All pCms must comply with the statutory requirements after full implementation of the provisions relating to the registration of pCms.
(iii) Products such as "health food", "complementary medicines" or "dietary supplements" which cannot be classified as Chinese medicine or western medicine are regulated under the Public Health and Municipal Services Ordinance (Cap 132) as general food products. The Ordinance requires the manufacturers and sellers of food to ensure that their products are fit for human consumption and comply with the requirements in respect of food safety, food standards and labelling. According to the Food and Drugs (Composition and Labelling) Regulations (Cap 132W) under the Ordinance, all prepackaged food should bear labels which correctly list out the ingredients of the food.
On the other hand, there are different ordinances regulating advertisements of products such as food items claimed to have beneficial health effects, "complementary medicines" or "dietary supplements". The Trade Descriptions Ordinance (Cap 362) prohibits the making of false trade descriptions in respect of the method of manufacture, composition, testing results and fitness for purpose in an advertisement. The "Generic Code of Practice on Television Advertising Standards" and the "Radio Code of Practice on Advertising Standards" issued pursuant to the Broadcasting Ordinance (Cap 562) and the Broadcasting Authority Ordinance (Cap 391) stipulate that an advertisement of any product or service must not contain any descriptions, claims or illustrations that depart from truth.
The Public Health and Municipal Services Ordinance makes it an offence for any person to use or to display a food label which falsely describes the food or is calculated to mislead as to its nature, substance or quality. The Ordinance also makes it an offence for any person to publish, or to be a party to the publication of, an advertisement which falsely describes any food.
In addition, the Food and Drugs (Composition and Labelling) (Amendment: Requirements for Nutrition Labelling and Nutrition Claim) Regulation 2008 made under the Public Health and Municipal Services Ordinance regulates the nutrition labelling and claims of general food products, including requiring the nutrient function claims on the labels and advertisements of prepackaged food to comply with the statutory requirements. The Amendment Regulation will come into effect on July 1, 2010. The new provisions will enable consumers to make healthy food choices, encourage food manufacturers to provide food products that are conducive to public health and meet sound nutrition principles, and regulate misleading or deceptive nutrition information labels and claims.
The Undesirable Medical Advertisements Ordinance prohibits any person to publish, or cause to be published, any advertisement likely to lead to the use of any medicine, surgical appliance or treatment for the purpose of preventing or treating certain diseases or conditions as specified in Schedules 1 and 2 to the Ordinance.
Ends/Wednesday, December 9, 2009
Issued at HKT 14:17
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